I’m not good at New Year’s Resolutions and I have a feeling you aren’t either. I’m sure the original idea had great intentions: (this year I really messed up in this area, so next year I’m going to be better), but they’ve turned into unrealistic goals and major letdowns. I’m all for self-reflection and goals, and highly encourage you to sit down with a pen and paper and dig a little deeper. I personally spent part of my New Year’s Eve writing down everything I could remember from 2015 (Sporting KC and the Royals both bringing home trophies, being President of APO and road tripping from Seattle to KC to name a few) and praying a prayer of thanksgiving- for blessings and struggles, achievements and failures, new friends and burnt bridges, lessons and calls to action, and most of all for the Father’s love and grace. 2015 wasn’t all great, it had it’s highs and lows like every other year. I stumbled, I succeeded, I failed, I got back up.
I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but you’re going to fail this year. Some of you may complete your New Year’s Resolution of losing weight or reading the bible in a year with minimal setbacks, while others of you may lose sight a few weeks from now. I’ve never met someone who said, “I made a New Year’s Resolution to ________ and from January 1- December 31 I never faltered and now I’m a better person.” This doesn’t happen. I don’t know if you know this, but humans aren’t perfect. What? Paige, are you serious? I’m totally serious. A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away (I’m so sorry), this little dude named Adam ate an apple from the forbidden tree and now it’s guaranteed that you will mess up at least 1,000 times this year. It’s part of human nature. The Bible says,
“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” Romans 3:23
and
“All of us have become like something unclean, and all our righteous acts are like a polluted garment; all of us wither like a leaf, and our iniquities carry us away like the wind.” Isaiah 64:6
Well that sucks, I’m going to mess up so I might as well give up, right? Just hold on a second, let me get to the best part. The Bible also says that we are not defined by our sins. YOU are not defined by your failures.
“But God, who is abundant in mercy, because of His great love that He had for us, made us alive with the Messiah even though we were dead in trespasses. By grace you are saved! He also raised us up with Him and seated us with Him in the heavens in Christ Jesus…” Ephesians 2:4-6
Thousands of years ago God gave us two son/suns. First, He provided us with the Sun. He allowed us a new dawn everyday. You don’t have to wait a whole year to start fresh. Everyday is a clean slate. We have the opportunity everyday for self-reflection, self-improvement, to make amends, to love more, to live more boldly.
Secondly, God gave His son. In Luke 7, there is a story where Jesus shows up to a social gathering and he’s anointed by “the sinful woman.” Now remember when I said that we weren’t defined by our sins? Well before Jesus, we were. This woman clearly messed up- I mean, they call her the sinful woman- she’s an outcast, condemned by her community, everyone knows not to speak to her. Instead of condemning her, Jesus engages with her. And while he’s surrounded by a room full of people throwing some mean shade, he doesn’t call her “the sinful woman.” He calls her Forgiven. He anoints her a Daughter of the King.
No matter where you’ve been in your life, no matter what you’ve done or will do, Jesus is trying to engage you. Going into 2016, you may have a New Year’s Resolution. Some of you will reach them, but many of you won’t. At some point, you’re doing to stumble, you’re going to fall and you’re going to fail. And whether you fail and feel unworthy, or succeed and feel unfulfilled, don’t give up. Please, don’t let this world define you. Your identity is not in your mistakes, but in Christ Jesus, who loves you and gave Himself for you. You are a child of the one true King. You are loved.
2016 is your year and so is every year after that, because you, my friend, have been redeemed.
“Jesus is love, and he pours out his agape love in a million different ways everyday. Love knows no limit to its endurance, no end to its trust, no fading of its hope, it can outlast anything. It is, in fact the one thing that still stands when all else has fallen.”
–Rich Wilkerson Jr.
(Rich Wilkerson Jr. covers all this and more in greater depth in his new book Sandcastle Kings and I highly encourage you to check it out.)
